J. A. V.*, 16th New York Infantry, On the Battle

19122012

Letter from the War.

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The following two letters from St. Lawrence County boys will be read with interest:

Alexandria, July [??], 1861.

Our regiment was sent to the extreme left to protect a battery of six rifled cannon. We remained inactive until about four o’clock, when we espied a detachment of the enemy coming to take possession of our guns. Under Lieutenant Colonel Marsh we formed to receive them, and the artillery played upon them with fine effect. They were in a ravine and we upon a hill. They fired upon us. We laid down and their bullets passed over our heads, falling among us, and in front of us. Our boys were as cool as if at their dinner, and waited for the foe to show themselves on the brow of the hill, with a smile of satisfaction on their countenances. They did not advance, and our artillery getting out of ammunition and leaving us, we were ordered to retreat, which we did in excellent style. Our regiment was the last to leave the field, and come near being surrounded, as our men had all retreated and left us alone.

Lieutenant Colonel Marsh showed great coolness and courage, and acquitted himself with great credit. Our regiment was the only one that left the field with unbroken ranks and marched in good style the whole way. This was due to the energy of Colonel Marsh and by his fearless conduct he has endeared himself to the officers and men. None of our regiment were hurt except Lieutenant Hopkins, who was slightly wounded in the heel while out on a scouting expedition.

We are again in our old camp, and were absent from Tuesday until Monday, during which time I never took off my clothes, slept on the ground, and ate hard bread and raw pork. I feel well, and am ready for another fight and hope we will have more competent leaders next time. Our loss is not so great as was first reported, although it is too much for all that was gained. The loss of the enemy must have been very great as a fierce cannonading was kept up by our men for over four hours.

Our men are very much dissatisfied with their food and I must say that our commissary department is very poor. We have not yet had our pay, and some are growling about it. All are out of money and we await with eager eyes the approach of pay day, which has been deferred from time to time.

Dulce bellum inexpertis

“I am sending you these little incidents as I hear them well authenticated. They form, to the friends of the parties, part of the history of the glorious 21st. More anon.”

About

Hello! I’m Harry Smeltzer and welcome to Bull Runnings, where you'll find my digital history project on the First Battle of Bull Run which is organized under the Bull Run Resources section. I'll also post my thoughts on the processes behind the project and commentary on the campaign, but pretty much all things Civil War are fair game. You'll only find musings on my “real job” or my personal life when they relate to this project. My mother always told me "never discuss politics or religion in mixed company”, and that's sound advice where current events are concerned.

The Project

This site is more than a blog. Bull Runnings also hosts digitized material pertaining to First Bull Run. In the Bull Run Resources link in the masthead and also listed below are links to Orders of Battle, After Action Reports, Official Correspondence, Biographical Sketches, Diaries, Letters, Memoirs, Newspaper Accounts and much, much more. Take some time to surf through the material. This is a work in process with no end in sight, so check back often!